Well, that was an interesting first weekend. The Skating Saints followed up a less than stellar 5-2 loss to RIT with a 10-2 win over Niagara. Yes, you read that right.
I know its only two games, but a few guys have impressed me thus far. Mike Marnell and Nolan Gluchowski both played excellent on Saturday, at least statistically, I didn't watch any of either game. Bayreuther picked up Saturday where he left off last year. Drew Smolcynski has five points already, and he had ten all last year.
So yes, the offense has been good, or at least it was Saturday. But the defense...
It's not great. And you can bet that Justin Buzzeo and Kyle Schempp are licking their chops.
Bottom line is, Ferris is a good team. They sit at 4 in the latest USCHO poll. So then, a very good team. They return all but one of their defensemen and their goalie, CJ Motte, regarded as one of the best in college hockey, from last year, a team defense that allowed 2.19 goals per game in
2013-2014.
Compare that to a Niagara team that allowed 3.09 per game last year, and arguably got worse in the offseason.
Also, Nolan Gluchowski is out this weekend with an injury. Just another blow to the defense. Expect McMullan most likely.
I know it sounds negative, and really bad. But Carvel himself said the Saints were correctly placed in the ECAC preseason poll. They were 11th.
I think the Saints can match up with the Bulldogs on offense easily. But Motte gives Ferris the edge in net, and there's no question they have the edge defensively. Therefore, possession is key for SLU. Winning faceoffs, getting to loose pucks first, getting second chance opportunities in the offensive zone. Capitalizing on the chances they get will be key, because there probably won't be a ton.
The neutral zone will be important for the Saints. When the transition game is working well, St. Lawrence can dominate the pace of play, but I saw neutral zone turnovers lead to tons of goals last year. If SLU can own the neutral zone, they should be able to get a win.
Puck drops at 7 on Friday and on Saturday.
I know its only two games, but a few guys have impressed me thus far. Mike Marnell and Nolan Gluchowski both played excellent on Saturday, at least statistically, I didn't watch any of either game. Bayreuther picked up Saturday where he left off last year. Drew Smolcynski has five points already, and he had ten all last year.
So yes, the offense has been good, or at least it was Saturday. But the defense...
It's not great. And you can bet that Justin Buzzeo and Kyle Schempp are licking their chops.
Bottom line is, Ferris is a good team. They sit at 4 in the latest USCHO poll. So then, a very good team. They return all but one of their defensemen and their goalie, CJ Motte, regarded as one of the best in college hockey, from last year, a team defense that allowed 2.19 goals per game in
2013-2014.
Compare that to a Niagara team that allowed 3.09 per game last year, and arguably got worse in the offseason.
Also, Nolan Gluchowski is out this weekend with an injury. Just another blow to the defense. Expect McMullan most likely.
I know it sounds negative, and really bad. But Carvel himself said the Saints were correctly placed in the ECAC preseason poll. They were 11th.
I think the Saints can match up with the Bulldogs on offense easily. But Motte gives Ferris the edge in net, and there's no question they have the edge defensively. Therefore, possession is key for SLU. Winning faceoffs, getting to loose pucks first, getting second chance opportunities in the offensive zone. Capitalizing on the chances they get will be key, because there probably won't be a ton.
The neutral zone will be important for the Saints. When the transition game is working well, St. Lawrence can dominate the pace of play, but I saw neutral zone turnovers lead to tons of goals last year. If SLU can own the neutral zone, they should be able to get a win.
Puck drops at 7 on Friday and on Saturday.
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